The Tailor and the Shipwright

by Robert Westphal

  ‘The harbour itself is relatively sheltered. However, once you cross from the southern to the northern headland you are totally exposed to the ocean swell. In the headland gap it can be relatively calm but also you can get the full effect of 10-foot swell. The boat can be flipped in those conditions before you know it. If there is a big swell, do not even consider crossing between the headlands – pull the boat up on a beach, of which there are plenty, and wait it out. It also goes without saying, stay within the harbour area. On no account go out into the open ocean – you will never be seen again!’

  Sam broke into the conversation, ‘Mr O’Neil, I’ll be off now but come back tomorrow and ask around for me. I will have everything ready for you.’

  Tommy asked Denis to redraw the map on paper, which Denis did for him, and the two men said goodbye to each other.

  ‘Best of Irish luck, O’Neil,’ said Denis in parting, to wind up his new friend.

  Tommy and Anne arrived back the next morning with a swag Anne had packed. They would follow the advice to cross the harbour to the northern side, to Neutral Bay, and work east along the coastline from there. The northern side of the harbour was virtually unpopulated by colonists, as there were no means to cross to it other than by boat. Also there was no need to go there. Firstly, there was plenty of land on the southern shore that connected to Sydney Town and secondly, the land on the northern shore was no more arable than the area around the cove.

  O’Neil would not be the first person to visit the North Shore. In earlier times, around 1801, Governor King had instigated the building of a defensive battery upon Middle Head to protect the infant colony from invasion, chiefly by the French.

  Over the next few days the expedition worked its way along the northern shoreline, investigating the main inlets as they went. Following east from Neutral Bay was a series of shallow inlets, where one could see the whole extent of the bay. They picked their way along this coastline. The bays were picturesque and had ample landing spots. After these bays they came across a deeper bay (later to be named Mosman Bay) that ran inland for a about a mile. It was spectacular with its sandstone cliffs and large eucalyptus trees forming a border to the calm waters. The bay culminated in a swampy area with a freshwater creek emptying into it. They took the opportunity to replenish their water supplies.

  On leaving the deep bay they worked their way around a long headland that protruded into the harbour. Sam pointed out that the increasing swell under the boat meant they were getting closer to the headlands that opened to the ocean. Recalling Denis’s advice they set up camp at a place where they had a view of the north and south headlands to check on the ocean swell. Tommy roughly knew where he was from Denis’s map.

  They spent some very pleasant hours sitting on a rock and dropping a baited line on the sandy bottom. In almost no time fish appeared and took the bait.

  They became used to the different taste of the local rock oysters, though Anne found it difficult to lever them from their hold on the rocks. The oysters were there by the millions. The edges of the oysters were very sharp, which made them hazardous to remove. Cleaned of sand and the odd piece of shell, the oysters were succulent and tasty.

  It was in this final camping spot before crossing the headlands that a group of Indigenous people came down the rock face. At first Tommy and Anne were concerned for their safety; however, they need not have been. The people were more curious than anything else, though they kept their distance, and it became evident there was no need to be concerned. Just as well, because Tommy knew they wouldn’t have been able to defend themselves from attack.

  Tommy was aware from the stories that had passed around the colony that the Aboriginal population in the area had suffered extreme loss of life soon after the First Fleet’s arrival from an outbreak of smallpox, to which they had no immunity. Tommy was used to seeing Aboriginal people in town – in ragtag bands who he sometimes gave a few pennies to, or lone men drunkenly yelling, or children adopted by settlers – but he was surprised to see them in the bush, having believed they had all but vanished from there.

  The women paddled on the water on their bark canoes to catch fish. Tommy indicated by gestures that they could use the remnants of his fire. As the light of the day faded, Tommy, Anne and Sam set out their swags on the beach above the high water mark.

  By the time they rose in the morning, the swell that had been pounding into the northern headland on the previous night was abating. The waves no longer had a white crest on them and the windblown foam had stopped appearing over the northern headland. The three travellers agreed they should proceed. The boat was untied from a rock to which it had been secured and refloated, at which point one of the Indigenous men Tommy recognised from the evening before leapt into the boat.

  After they had recovered from their shock, they were even more surprised when the man introduced himself in English as Bungaree. This man was famous in the colony for having circumnavigated the whole continent in 1803 with Matthew Flinders. It had taken them three years to complete the journey. Bungaree was a Kuringgai man from the Broken Bay area some 25 miles north, and he knew a lot more about boats, sailing and the local environment than Tommy and Anne would ever know.

  Sam slipped the oars into the rollicks, nosed the craft away from the beach and headed out around the headland that would subsequently be called Middle Head.

  Even while the swell was low the waves still pounded into the rocks at the foot of the cliff, sucking back only to re-energise and pound in again. If a storm blew up now he had very limited options to remain safe as they had moved too far from the beach. However, it was morning and storms were not frequent at that time of the day. Sam knew he needed to make landfall before the shadows crept across the water from the west and took comfort from the fact that Bungaree was showing no concern.

  He was relieved when they’d rounded the headland and could see their objective. At least the sea was now running at the stern of the boat. The motion of the water and waves combined to help propel the boat forward towards a long beach. Sam ceased rowing and used the oars just to maintain direction.

  Dead in front of the boat was a beach (later to be named Hunters Beach, Balmoral) and another to their left. The beach they were facing seemed to extend far to the right, only interrupted by a couple of headlands. The bay expanded to the west and thereafter seemed to be blocked by a long spit of sand.

  While the beach they were facing was open to the sea, and as a consequence to the ocean swell, it was also protected by the headland they had just navigated and also by another (later to be named Dobroyd Head) that was well behind them now. The landscape was more of the same they had already experienced: steeply sloping sandstone cliffs covered by scrub and eucalyptus trees.

  Bungaree pointed to the left-hand side of the beach (later to be named Balmoral Reserve) and said it was the best place to make landfall. The swell and small waves delivered the boat into shallow water. Then it was a matter of drawing the vessel above the high-tide line and securing it. They had reached the southern end of the beach where a freshwater creek emptied into the harbour. They had a drink of water and looked around.

  At the apex of the beach the sand was covered in tusks of grass that merged into dense woodland. They found it hard to make any progress through the wooded area with the only help being the old tracks made by people. Apart from large trees surrounded by fallen limbs and branches, there were native plants that were almost impenetrable, covered in wiry branches and thorns that tore at Tommy’s clothes and skin at every movement.

  The woodland was full of birds. The sulphur-crested cockatoos along with the kookaburras were making an infernal racket. In the scrub, bush turkeys raked through the leaves for a feed of insects and grubs. They needed to be careful where they trod, as the threat from the country’s large array of venomous snakes was ever present.

  On returning to the beach Tommy and Anne noticed that it ran in a pleasant curve to a small, rocky island, only about 50 by 20 metres in s
ize, and then resumed until it met another headland. The ‘island’ (now known as Rocky Point Island) was in fact accessible from the beach via a spit of sand. They set up camp under a tree by the creek and were soon joined by Bungaree’s mob who they had seen the previous night. They had walked over the headland.

  The next morning they walked a short distance along the beach towards the island they had noticed the previous night. Within 100 metres of where they had set up camp, they came across an enormous midden of shells and fish bones; a testament to how long people had lived at the location.

  ‘Probably hundreds of years, if not more,’ Tommy said to Anne.

  Bungaree laughed and said people had always been there.

  It’s a testimony to the bounty and prolificacy of the seafood in the waters, thought Tommy.

  They continued walking along the beach towards the island and came across a second creek that also flowed down from the high ridge to the west of the beach. Tommy could see that the ridgeline ran to the west for the full length of the beach. He therefore expected to see further creeks entering the harbour. Walking inland along the second creek, the flatness of the land meant that the creek ran through an area of swampy ground before entering the harbour.

  The waves on the beach were gentle and made a very pleasant sound as they broke just off the shore. Above the tide line the sand was firm and made for easy walking. Though Tommy was occasionally caught out by a wave fractionally stronger than its predecessor, which didn’t fail to make Bungaree laugh, and this made Anne and Sam laugh.

  Upon reaching the island, which lay off the northern end of the beach, they scaled the rocks to reach its surface, several metres above the tide. From this vantage point they had an amazing view out to sea between North and South Heads.

  After walking along the smaller beach they reached a low headland with a rocky platform jutting into the harbour (later to be named Wyargine Point). The platform made for easy walking. There were now sandy beaches on either side of the inlet and in the distance was the spit of sand they had noticed from the boat the day before. Due to the narrow opening around the spit they could not see past it. The rocky cliffs, which glowed red on sunset at their campsite, got steeper and steeper as they looked past the spit.

  Anne said to Tommy, ‘Are you thinking what I am?’

  ‘I think so. This is a beautiful place. We could live here easily.’

  ‘There is a lot of work to do to clear the site. We could not possibly do it ourselves. We would need to secure a number of indentured convicts, experienced axe men.’

  ‘I agree, Anne. I am entitled to a land grant from the Governor but in these uncertain times, we would be best to wait awhile until a new governor arrives. It must surely happen soon if the rumours are right.’

  ‘Tommy, I want to live here.’

  They wanted to be part of this magnificent place. The area provided everything they had sought before setting out on this exploration. There were no Europeans living in this part of the harbour, there was fresh water where they had set up camp and there was plenty of available seafood for all. As well, it was protected from the southern and eastern winds. However, they would bear the full onslaught of any storm from the east. The major problem they would need to overcome was transport to and from Sydney Cove. They could not have an oarsman permanently based here to run them back and forth. There had to be another way.

  They walked up the steep cliff to Georges Heights, Middle Head to see the magazine and parapet that Governor King had installed. The magazine building was solidly built. Tommy paced it out at 24 feet in length. It seemed to have been abandoned. From the elevation, the view out the heads to the ocean beyond was something to behold. The northern headland was substantial with vertical cliffs falling to the ocean where blue waves pounded into the rocks below. The southern headland was more subdued but still an effective barrier.

  Tommy wondered whether the pathway that had been cleared to build the magazine might provide access to their chosen land, and thereby avoid the need to ‘boat’ around the harbour to access the beach.

  They decided to give more thought to the matter and investigate access to this pathway on their return to Sydney Cove.

  15.

  O’Neil’s Dilemma

  SYDNEY TOWN, 1809

  In late 1809 there was no resident governor of New South Wales. Following the departure of Bligh, the New South Wales Corps was running the colony. At a normal time, a grant of land could only be obtained at the behest of the Governor. Tommy did not like the idea of petitioning the Corps for a land grant because they only had one interest, their own. He did not trust the bastards. The petition would have to wait upon a new governor’s arrival.

  If he and Anne decided to relocate to Middle Harbour, what would they do with the tailor shop? Before that happened, Tommy figured he could spend some time at Middle Harbour while he had Darby Carbery working with him, and Anne had developed cutting and sewing skills to help out in his absence.

  As 1809 came to an end, the new governor arrived: Major-General Lachlan Macquarie. He took office, with an elaborate ceremony, on 1 January 1810. While all his predecessors were naval men, Macquarie had a military background and he brought a regiment with him and had the Corps recalled to England, thereby establishing his authority.

  Macquarie also brought a new level of humanitarianism to the treatment of convicts. He wrote to the Secretary of State:

  I was very much surprised and concerned on arrival here, at the extraordinary and illiberal policy I found had been adopted by all the Persons who had preceded me in Office respecting those men who had originally been sent out to this Country as Convicts, but who, by long habits of Industry, and total Reformation of Manners, had not only become respectable, but by many degrees the most Useful Members of the Community. Those persons have never been countenanced or received into society. I have, nevertheless, taken upon Myself to adopt a new line of conduct, Conceiving that Emancipation, when united with Rectitude and long-tried good conduct, should land a man back to that Rank in Society which he had forfeited, and do away, in as far as the Case will admit, all Retrospect of former bad Conduct.

  With stability restored and a new social fabric, Tommy and Anne decided the time was ripe to lodge their petition for the grant of land at Middle Harbour. Many former convicts had already petitioned for land and received approval so they were not the first.

  Over recent years, a few of the better educated colonists had gone into the business of preparing petitions, for a fee, on behalf of other residents. After weighing up this option, Thomas decided to save on the costs and do it himself. The petition was a general request for acreage supported by the fact that he was of good conduct and disposition and had a wife with a child on the way. He lodged the petition in February.

  At the end of April 1810 Anne went into labour. She had arranged for a midwife to be in attendance to help with the birth. Tommy had experience in the matter of childbirth and knew the midwife was needed urgently. He rushed out of their home and returned with her.

  Tommy left the women to their task and busied himself outside their home. Suddenly there was a scream of joy from inside the house and he heard the cry of a newborn. He wondered, would the child be a boy or a girl? Being the father of three girls he thought the odds were stacked in favour of another, but perhaps it was time for a little boy.

  After an interminable delay, he heard Anne call to him, ‘Tommy come and have a look at the wee thing.’

  He rushed inside and beheld his wife holding out the baby.

  ‘Tommy,’ said Anne, ‘I know in your hearts of hearts you were hoping for a boy but you have another daughter. As for a name, I was thinking, Anastasia, in recognition of Saint Anastasia, “She of the Resurrection”. How do you like that?’

  ‘Anne,’ said Tommy with emotion, ‘I think that is a grand name and in line with a good Catholic tradition.’ So the newborn was called Anastasia, but being a bit of a mouthful it was shortened to Hannah for day-t
o-day purposes.

  Anne spent the rest of the year nurturing Anastasia.

  Anne and Tommy were still waiting to hear the outcome of their petition for the land grant at Middle Harbour. To date there had been no word from Governor Macquarie.

  While Tommy had been tormented by the choice of shop versus farm, in October 1810 the decision was taken out of his hands. His good friend Darby, who he had sailed with all those years ago on Friendship and had been a very able assistant in the shop, died of a sudden illness. Darby’s passing tied Tommy to the shop. Doing both was no longer an option.

  By February 1811 Anne Kennedy had served four years of her seven-year sentence, which made her eligible to apply for a ticket of leave.

  A ticket of leave enabled convict workers to work for themselves, provided they stayed within a specified area and reported regularly to local authorities. It was recommended that a convict who had been granted a ticket of leave attend Sunday divine service, if possible, but on no account were they permitted to leave the colony. Most convicts sought to apply for a ticket as soon as they were eligible.

  Anne’s petition for pardon read:

  His Honour, the Present Lieutenant Governor gave your petitioner leave to acquire a livelihood, on her own account, which she has done in an industrious way with Thomas O’Neil, Pitt Street, Sydney, having a child. That your petitioner begs that Your Excellency will be pleased to grant her a ticket of leave and your petitioner will ever pray and trust.

  The petitions for the land grant and Anne’s ticket of leave penned by Tommy were not high on Macquarie’s ‘must do’ list. It was not until mid-1811 that O’Neil was summoned to Government House to hear the outcome. He was bid to meet the Governor.

  ‘Thomas O’Neil,’ said Macquarie in a booming voice. ‘I have before me your petition for fifty acres of land. I see here that you have applied for the fifty acres as follows: thirty for yourself, twenty for your wife and ten for your forthcoming child. I am given to understand that you are not married to your wife. Therefore I will grant you forty acres.’